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Colonies
The Colonies, the Ruined Kingdoms, was the name used by the rokugani to refer to the lands formerly known as the Ivory Kingdoms. In 1172 the territory was visited by the Mantis Clan and found the cities destroyed, without any survivor. The Ruined Kingdom, Part 2, by Shawn Carman Imperial decree In 1173 after the end of the Destroyer War the Empress Iweko I edicted that these lands would be conquered for the Empire. The tainted member of the Spider Clan, the Iweko's Conquerors, and the Mantis Clan were primarily involved in this task. Goddesses, Part 4, by Shawn Carman The Empress stated that the Spider would not lay claim to all of this land, but they would be tasked with ensuring its relative safety before others enter. A Brief History of the Sanctioned Spider Clan, by Seth Mason Colonies The Rokugani began the construction of colonies there, as the Second City, its metropolis and capital. To the Second City (Imperial Herald V3 #8), by Shawn Carman A few days north had been built the first colonical settlement, Journey's End Keep, in the southern border of the Western Wastes. Second City - The City, p. 5 Seasons The Ivinda described six separate seasons, but the Rokugani settlers tended to consider there were four seasons. Instead the Rokugani spring the Colonial year began with the winter season, a mixture of summer and autumn in the Empire. This was the time for harvest and the best suitable time for war, from January until mid-March. Summer lasted from mid-March until mid-June, and it was the time for repair and craft. The season of rains, known as the Monsoon season, began in mid-June, the time to prepare armies and planting. If rains were delayed or even fail to come at all, a season of drought spread famine on the Colonies, unless Rokugan shipped food. The post-Monsoon season lasted from end of September until the end of December, the season of growing, exploration, and war, along with the majority of clearing lands and building new settlements to expand the Colonies. This was also a season of travel, the time to leave the Colonies to travel to Rokugan. Second City - The City, p. 89 Communications The colonies could be reached by sea, usually by Mantis ships, or through land by caravans, crossing the dangerous Western Wastes. This path started in the Unicorn territory, the Western Steppes, and ended in the Second City. An overland route following a southern trail along the river connected with the colonial Mantis coastline in 1175. Second City - The City, pp. 5-6 A ritual of communion was discovered, a single shugenja would project their influence the entire distance between the Colonies and the Empire. This instantaneous communication was incredibly difficult with premature aging as a side effect. Two shugenja employing the same ritual to meet in the middle proved much less taxing. Ivory Edition Rulebook Fictions Government The Imperial Governor of the Colonies was the Empire representative. He was given direct command of the Second City. The Hand of the Empress, by Shawn Carman History Summer Court In 1179 it was held the first Summer Court, in the Colonial capital, the Second City. It was an original idea of Ide Toshiro, sanctioned by the Empress Iweko I. Second City - The City, p. 90 War of Serpents In 1198 the governor Ikoma Katsuru was killed by a Dark Naga in the opening phase of the War of Serpents. Rulebook story (Forgotten Legacy), by Shawn Carman and Rusty Priske Yodotai Attacks The Unicorn escorts of the Ki-Rin's Path came under attack by a large, organized force, and they had no choice but to fall back to a secondary route. The senior sensei of the Akodo War College, Akodo Uehara, recognized hints of the Yodotai strategies employed in these attacks. Embers of War, by Shawn Carman Madness During the end of the 12th century had begun a growing wave of insanity in the Colonies that eventually led to the Siege of the Second City by the Ninth Imperial Legion. Torn Asunder, Part 3, by Seth Mason The mad dragon P'an Ku finally revealed himself as the driving force behind these tightening coils of madness. Cultists of Fudo and cultists of P'an Ku took up arms and vie for theological supremacy over the Colonies. Coils of Madness Growing Resentment toward the Empire Even after the defeat of P'an Ku and its banishment from the mortal realm, the resentment among Colonial samurai toward their kinsmen in the Empire increased. Imperial Herald Letters v3 #11a (Age of Conquest) Empire In Exile In 1200 the rebellious Spider Clan destroyed the Sacred Seals, allowing the monster of Jigoku to roam free on Ningen-do. The Emperor Iweko II ordered the evacuation of the Rokugani to the Colonies, to secure their traditions and memories from the amassing Shadowlands horde. The ruling government was known as Empire In Exile and the Colonies began to be calle the New Imperial Territories. The Dawn of Onyx Edition Known Districts The colonies were divided into districts: 2012 Kotei Season * The Empty Plains (1) * New Rokugan (2) * The Ivory Coast (3) * The Frontier (4) * The Unknown Lands (5) Category:Gaijin Places *